Can the RedSox beat the Yankees and win the AL East?

[Canadian]

Nope, not gonna happen. I'm the farthest thing from a Yankees fan, but I don't think they can do it this year.

Here's what it boils down to:

Garciapara and Soriano are excellent hitting middle infielders that can make some spectacular plays, but they're both prone to making errors on routine balls. The guy who screws up least often will likely be on the winning team. Being that a bobbled ball at shortstop usually leads to a guy getting on base while at second base Soriano could still recover and record the out I'd say Garciapara's errors will prove to be more devastating.

Mariano Rivera doesn't seem to have the command or the presence that has made him a sure thing the last few years, but what he still has is that intangible - playoff experience. Byung-Hyun Kim has some playoff experience as well but we all know how pretty that was

David Ortiz and Manny Ramirez are hot right now, and if they can keep it up in the playoffs then that will give them a fighting chance. However, the Yankees pulled Luis Sojo out of the coaching staff to add to the lineup and with clutch hitting Nick Johnson the Yankees could pull themselves out of just about any hole in the playoffs

Guys who are likely to choke and be tagged with the goat label: David Wells, Byung-Hyun Kim, Jeff Weaver (if he sees the mound), Tim Wakefield, and Johnny Damon.

I'd personally like to see the Giants against the A's in a California battle (gotta like Oakland as a small market team that can succeed).